Peanut Butter Oatmeal Girl Scout Cookies

 
Brandon told the boys they could have whatever they wanted for dessert tonight, since it was a "Holiday".  It was decided that we should bake some cookies, so I decided that we should try something new.  Another great blog post, and something different to try.  I know I've been mentioning allrecipes.com a lot lately, but once again I found myself there.  I searched for cookie and then put them in order of highest reviews.  I think this was the 3rd highest with over 700 reviews.  I also had all the ingredients and the boys thought they sounded great (and why wouldn't they with peanut butter in them...)  Any how, these turned out a little larger than I thought.  I used my 2 t. cookie scoop, and really think I could have used half of that to make them more like the girl scout cookies.  The taste, however, is FANTASTIC!  You probably need to make them smaller just because you know you'll eat more than one anyway....Sorry Girl Scouts, but I'll no longer be buying your peanut butter oatmeal cookies, these are FAR better!  Happy New Year!

Ingredients

3/4 c. flour
1/2 t. baking soda
1/4 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1/2 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. peanut butter
1/2 c. white sugar
1/2 c. packed light brown sugar
1 egg
1 t. vanilla extract
1 c. quick cooking oats
3 T. butter, softened
1 c. confectioners' sugar
1/2 c. smooth peanut butter
2 1/2 T. heavy whipping cream (whatever milk you have in the fridge will work fine)

Directions

1. In a large bowl, cream together 1/2 cup butter or margarine, 1/2 cup peanut butter, white sugar, brown sugar, and vanilla. Add egg and beat well.
2. In another bowl, combine the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Add these dry ingredients to the creamed mixture. Stir. Add oatmeal and stir.
3. Drop by teaspoons onto greased baking sheet.
4. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 9-11 minutes, or until cookies are a light brown.
5. To Make Filling: Cream 3 tablespoons butter or margarine with the confectioners' sugar, 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter, and the cream.
6. Spread filling onto half of the cooled cookies, then top with the other half to form sandwiches.  (I put the frosting in a zip lock bag and snipped the end off to make frosting the cookies super easy!)

Amish White Bread & Cinnamon Rolls

Well, Brandon thought some warm bread would be great with dinner. I found another heavily rated recipe on allrecipe.com and wallah! there was bread dough being made. While dividing the dough into two loaves, I decided that cinnamon rolls might be a GREAT option for the second loaf. It turned out well. If you like your bread white, this will certainly work well for you. It was really easy. I found out that my breadmachine isn't quite large enough to make 2 full loaves of dough at one time. Other than that, the only problem I had, was that this dough is STICKY. I guess that's not really a problem, as long as you don't dig your hands right into it without knowing what might happen.... I had to use quite a bit of flour just to be able to make it into a nice loaf (and cinnamon roll) shape, but other than that, it is YUMMY! I am pretty sure I started off the year saying I was going to make a lot of different breads. I guess that didn't happen, but I've had fun with the few I have made. Enjoy!

Ingredients

2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
2/3 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 cups bread flour 

 

Directions

 

1. If you have a bread machine, put ingredients into bread machine and run on dough cycle.  Then skip steps 2 and 3.
2. In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.
3. Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
4. Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes, and divide in half. Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.
5. Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 - 40 minutes.

Pumpkin Pancakes

I ran across these pancakes on all recipes. As I've said before, I'm not a huge pumpkin fan, but with a 4.5 star rating and over 1300 ratings; I had to try! I should probably state that my husband actually made these for me since I had carpal tunnel surgery this week, but I was an eager on-looker! Serving these with butter and maple syrup, these will be made again, and again in this household!  Perhaps I'm a bigger fan of pumpkin than I knew.....

Ingredients

2 cups milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 egg
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons vinegar
2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt 

Directions

1. In a bowl, mix together the milk, pumpkin, egg, oil and vinegar.
2. Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, ginger and salt in a separate bowl.
3. Stir dry ingredients into the pumpkin mixture just enough to combine.
4. Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Brown on both sides and serve hot.

Chocolate Chip Hazelnut Scones

These are requested every Christmas. They have real hazelnuts in them that are very hard to find except at Christmas time. Normally, my family gets together and we all take turn cracking the hazelnuts and just chatting. I hope you enjoy making them as well.

I have a mini scones pan to make these. However, you can make these without a scone pan.  Instructions are listed below.
 

Ingredients

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts, toasted and skinned

 

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (205 degrees C). Lightly butter a 9 inch diameter circle in the center of a baking sheet or scone pan.
2. In a large bowl, stir together flour, brown sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
3. Cut the butter into 1/2 inch cubes, and distribute evenly over flour mixture. With a pastry blender or two knives, cut butter into the flour mixture.
4. Stir together buttermilk, egg, and almond extract; add to the flour mixture, and stir to combine.
5. Stir in the chocolate chips and hazelnuts. The dough will be sticky.
6. Spread the dough into an 8 inch diameter circle on the baking sheet. Cut with a serrated knife into 8 wedges or put into butter scone pan.
7. Bake for 17 to 19 minutes, or until the top in lightly browned. Cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes. Transfer scones to the wire rack to cool, and cut into wedges. Serve warm, or cool completely and store in airtight container.

Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins

The recipe said these would have a cream cheese filling, but instead they have baked on cream cheese frosting. No worries - it's ALL good! The recipe said it would make 18 muffins; I made closer to 24. I do think that I could have mixed up just a little more of the streusel topping, but all in all, these turned out great!

Ingredients
8 oz package cream cheese
1 egg
1 t. vanilla extract
3 T. brown sugar

4 1/2 T. flour
5 T. white sugar
3/4 t. ground cinnamon
3 T. butter
3 T. chopped pecans

2 1/2 c. all-purpose flour
2 c. white sugar
2 t. baking powder
2 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 c. canned pumpkin
1/3 c. olive oil
2 t. vanilla

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Grease and flour 18 muffin cups, or use paper liners.
2. To make the filling: In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until soft. Add egg, vanilla and brown sugar. Beat until smooth, then set aside.
3. For the streusel topping: In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, cinnamon and pecans. Add butter and cut it in with a fork until crumbly. Set aside.
4. For the muffin batter: In a large bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Make a well in the center of flour mixture and add eggs, pumpkin, olive oil and vanilla. Beat together until smooth.  The batter will be VERY thick.
5. Place pumpkin mixture in muffin cups about 1/2 full.  Put a little indent in the top of the muffin batter with a teaspoon, then add one tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture right in the middle of the batter.  Sprinkle on the streusel topping.
6. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes.

Santa Grahams

Aiden has been wanting to take a snack into preschool and today we are. Aren't these just the cutest little snacks! We had so much fun making these and I think the other kids will enjoy them! Happy Holidays!

 INGREDIENTS

Red icing (optional)

Red food color

1 1/4 c. vanilla frosting (from 16-oz. can)

12 square graham crackers

1 c. (about 75) miniature marshmallows, halved crosswise

6 small red gumdrops, halved crosswise

24 red cinnamon candies or candy eyes

DIRECTIONS

1. If not using the red icing, blend together 1/4 t. red food color into 1/4 cup of frosting in small bowl.
2. In separate bowl, stir 1 drop red food color into remaining 1 cup frosting; blend well.
3. For each cookie, frost 1 inch of one corner of cracker with dark red frosting for Santa's hat.
4. Place 1 marshmallow piece in corner for pom-pom.
5. Frost remainder of cracker with pink frosting.
6. Place marshmallow pieces on pink frosting around 2 sides for beard.
7. Add gumdrop for nose and cinnamon candies or candy eyes for eyes.

Almond Cinnamon Rolls

I made these on a whim with a can of crescent rolls that was left over from Thanksgiving (Thanks, Mindy!), and Brandon say they might be better than Dutch Letters, if he could actually say that without being beaten by my family! They are so easy, that I could make these anytime!

INGREDIENTS

1-7 oz box Odense Almond Paste
 8 T. butter, room temperature
 3 T. sugar
 3 T. cinnamon
 1 T. flour
 2 - 8 oz tubes refrigerated crescent rolls
1 c. powdered sugar
1 T. milk
1/4 t. almond extract
 Optional garnish: toasted almonds slivers

 

DIRECTIONS

1.  Preheat oven to 375°F. Lightly grease a cookie sheet.
2. Grate Almond Paste on large hole side of a box grater.
3. Add Almond Paste, butter, sugar, cinnamon and flour to a bowl or food processor. Mix until well blended.  I was impatient and ended up just putting it in the microwave and melting the butter just a little bit until it would mix together well.
4. Unroll crescent dough. Divide each package into 4 rectangles. Pinch center seams (of 2 triangles) together securing the rectangle shape. With a spatula, spread equal amounts of cinnamon almond filling over each rectangle.
5. Starting at the short end of each rectangle, roll dough into a roll and pinch seam closed. Cut each roll into 3 equal pieces and slightly flatten with fingers.
6. Place each piece, side by side, on baking sheet. Bake for 12 - 14 minutes or until golden brown in color. Cool on wire rack.
7. While rolls are cooling, whisk powdered sugar with milk and almond extract. Spread onto cooled rolls. For an extra pretty garnish sprinkle with toasted almonds while icing is still wet.